[Senate  No.  169  ] 

SENATE,  Jauuarv  10,  186  V— Read  fi^si  and  second  times  and 
referred  to  Coramittee  on  the  J-idieiary.  January  14,  15i65.— Re- 
ported without  amendment,  and  ordured  to  be  printed-. 

[Mr.  Walker,  by  lea  ye. 


A    BILL 

To  secure,  more  effectually,  the  preservation  and  distribution  of  the 
effects  of  deceased  officers  and  soldit  rs 

1  The   Congress  of  the    Confederate   Stat,^      ,    .  ijierica  do  enact, 

2  That  whenever  any  person  claiming  to  be  an  agent  of  any  one 

3  of  the  Confederate  States,  duly  empowered  by  such  State    to 

4  attend  to  the  collection,  preservation  and  jjroper  distribution  of 

5  the  effects  of  officers  or  soldiers  fro  a  such  State,  who  have 
G  '  died  or  may  hereafter  die,  while  in  the  service  of  the  Confed- 
7  erate  States,  shall  show,  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  Secretary  of 
5  War,  that  he  is  the  legally  appointed  agent  of  such  State,  hav- 
9  ing  the  powers  and  subject  to  the  duties  above  mentioned,  it 

10  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  Secretary  of  War  to  issue  an  order  re- 

11  quiring  all  quartermasters,   surgeons  or  other  officers,  civil  or 

12  military,   of  the  Confederate  States,  or  any  person,  other  than 

13  the  legal  represenatives  of  the  deceased  officer  or  soldier,  hav- 

14  ing  charge  or  possession,  or  whose  duty  it  shall  be  to  take  charge 

15  or  possession  of  the  effects  or  any  part  thereof,  of  such  de- 

16  ceased  dBcer  or  soldier,  or  in  case  Fuch  effects  have  been  sold, 

17  of  theproceedsof  the  sale  of  such  effects,  to  deliver  or  satisfac- 


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18  torily  account  for  such  effects  or  proceeds  to  such  agent ;  to  the 

19  end  tliat  such  effects  or  proceeds  may  be  promptly  delivered  by 

20  such  agent  to  the  persons  legally  entitled  thereto  :  Provided, 

21  however,  that  this  Act  shall  not  be  construed  to  apply  to  such 

22  military  clothing  as  under  tlie  regulations  of  the  War  Depart- 

23  ment  is  or  may  be  required  to  be  appraised  and  re-issued 

1  Sec.  '2.    Upon  the  exhibition  of  such  order  from  the  Secretary 

2  of  War  and  the  demand  of  such   agent,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of 

3  any  quartermaster,  surgeon   or  other  oflicer  having  charge  or 

4  possession,  or  whcse  duty  it  is  or  may  be  to  take  charge  or  pos- 

5  ses^^ion  of  the  effects   or  proceeds  referred  to  in  the  first  sec- 

6  tion  of  this  Act,   forthwith  to  deliver  or  account  for  the  same 

7  to  such  agOLt,  who  is  hereby  authorized  to  cause  strict  investi- 

8  gation  to  be  made  in  reference    to  the  receipt,  possession  or 

9  disposition,  by  any  oflicer  or  person,   of  the  effects  or  the  pro- 

10  ceeds  thereof,  of  any  deceased  officer  ©r  soldier  from  the  State 

11  represented  by  such  agent,  and  to  demand  of  any  officer  or  per- 

12  son  having  charge  or  possession,   or  whose   duty  it  may  be  to 

13  take  charge  or  possession  of  such' effects  or  proceeds,  a  written 

14  statement  or  inventory  of  the   same,  clearly   setting  forth  the 

15  specific  article,  amount   and  kind  of  money,  watches,  jewelry, 

16  side-arms,  papers,  notes   or  other  effects  of  such  deceased  offi- 

17  cer  or  soldier,  that  may  have  come  to  the  knowledge,  possession 

18  or  control  of  such  officer  or   person.     And   any  officer  of  the 

19  army  who  shall  fail   or  refuse  to   deliver  to  such  agent,  under 


Ir, 
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20  the  order  of  the  Secretary   of  War,  such   effects,  or  the  pro- 

21  ceeds  thereof,  of  any  such  deceased  soldier  or  officer,  as  may  be 

22  in  his  possession  or  under  his  control — or  who   shall  fail  or  re- 

23  fuse  satisfactorily  to  account  to  such  agent   for  all  such  effects 

24  or  proceeds   thereof  as  it  may  have  been   his  duty   to  take 

25  charge  or  possession  of  paying  to  sach  agent  the  full  value  of 

26  all  such  effects  or  proceeds  as  may  have  been  lost  or  destroyed 

27  by  the  neglecE  of  said  officer — or  who  shall  fail  or  refuse  to  de- 

28  liver  to  such  agent  on  demand,  the  written  statement  or  inven- 

29  tory,above  mentioned,  shall,  on  conviction  by  court  martial,  be 

30  deprived  of  his  commission  and  put  in  the  ranks  as  a  private 

31  soldier. 

1  Sec.  3.  Any  Quartermaster,  Surgeon,  or  other  officer,  who  may 

2  deliver  or  account  for  the  effects,  or  the  proceeds  thereof,  of  any 

3  deceased  officer  or  soldier,  to  the  agent  of  any  State,  under 

4  the  provisions  of  this  Act,  shall  take  from  such  agent  duplicate 

5  receipts,  one  of  which  shall  be  forwarded  to  the  2d  Auditor  of 

0  the  Treasury,   who  shall  record  and  preserve  the  same ;  and 

7  the  delivery  of  such  effects  or  proceeds,   in  pursuance  of  this 

8  Act,  to  said  agent,  shall  exonerate  the  officer  making  the  same, 

9  and  the  government  of  the  Confederate  States,  from  all  liabil- 
10  ity  therefor. 

1  Sec.  4.  This  Act  shall  not  be  construed  to  affect  or  disturb  ex- 

2  isting  or  future  regulations  relating  to  the  cliargc,  preservation 

3  or  disposition  of  the  effects  of  deceased  officers  or  soldiers,  ex- 


4 

4  cept  in  so  far  as  the  authority  of  the  agent  of  a  State.  uimLi 

5  '  order  of  the  Secretary  of  War,  to  demand  and  receive;  and  the 
G  duty  of  all    officers  or  other  persons  to  deliver  to  such  agent 

7  such  efl'ects  or  the  proceeds  thereof,  as  hereinbefore  provided, 

8  may   be    consistent  with  such  regulations;   and   all   Quarter 

9  masters,  Surgeons  or  other  officers   or    persons   ■uho  are,  or 

10  may  be  required  by  such  regulations  to  take  charge  of  the  ef- 

11  fects  of  deceased  officers  or  soldiers,  shall  continue  to  do  so  in 

12  accordance  with  said  regulations,  except  so  far  as  the  same  may 

13  conflict  with  the  provisions  of  this  Act;  and  are  not  required 

14  to  account  for  or  to  deliver  such  effects  or  the  proceeds  thereof 

15  to  the  agent  above,  referred  to,  until  the  same  shall  l)e  specially 

16  demanded  by  him,  under  order  of  the  Secretary  of  War,  as 

17  hereinbefore  provided. 


